Monrovia , Liberia -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Two children orphaned by Ebola play in the empty corner of a Liberian orphanage . Their parents died last month , and none of the extended family is willing to claim them .

They 're too afraid .

For every Ebola grave , there is roughly one child who lost a parent in the West African countries of Guinea , Liberia and Sierra Leone .

The disease has robbed at least 4,555 people of their lives .

It has robbed some 4,000 children of one or both parents , the U.N. child agency , UNICEF , estimates . The agency fears the number will skyrocket with the rapid increase in Ebola cases .

Changing attitudes

The orphans are not sick , and pastor John Ghartey is tired of seeing them not being taken in . He is trying to change attitudes in his congregation at Christ Kingdom Harvest Church in New Georgia , Liberia .

It was slow going at first . As Ebola killed parents , the fear of contact with orphaned children spread , even after they persistently showed no symptoms .

`` Ebola is separating families because when your family has come down with the virus , nobody want to touch . Nobody want to interact , '' Ghartey said .

The disease has indeed turned the social fabric on its head . Extended family usually takes orphans in , but fear has broken the chain , said Manuel Fontaine , UNICEF 's regional director .

Sometimes , the fear is justified .

`` Ebola is turning a basic human reaction like comforting a sick child into a potential death sentence , '' Fontaine said .

UNICEF is working on safely treating children who are sick . About 2,500 survivors will get lessons on providing care to children quarantined in treatment centers . Ebola survivors are considered immune to the disease .

Inside the world 's worst Ebola outbreak

Compassion works

For his part , Ghartey has rallied from the pulpit and set an example , even by just holding orphaned children 's hands , a rare gesture in these fearful times .

It may have caught on .

Some children who were orphaned have found more compassionate relatives .

A woman in Ghartey 's choir died , leaving her eldest daughter to care for four brothers and sisters in addition to her own 1-year-old daughter . She has taken on the task .

The preacher remembers the scene when the woman died . She was lying dead in a room , while the rest of the family lay on the porch .

Ghartey invited them into his home .

`` They sit in my living room with my family , '' he said . `` They are like a family to us now . ''

As Ebola has thinned out his flock , the pastor has given them spiritual comfort to fight their fear .

`` If Christ is your convener , sickness and diseases can not destroy you in the name of Jesus ! ''

In the face of the deadly virus , he preaches , with his whole body and full voice , the hope of an immortal soul .

CNN 's Nima Elbagir reported and wrote from Monrovia ; Ben Brumfield wrote from Atlanta . Faith Karimi contributed to this report .

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Relatives wo n't take in children made orphans by Ebola

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A local pastor wants to see this change ; he practices what he preaches

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UNICEF : Thousands of children in West Africa have lost one or both parents to Ebola

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Ebola survivors , considered immune to the disease , are being trained to treat children